EVANSVILLE, Ind.—Samford guards Monica Maxwell and Emily London combined for 24 second-half points on Sunday to help power the visiting Bulldogs to a 69-66 victory over the University of Evansville women’s basketball team at Roberts Stadium in Evansville.

 

The duo did most of their damage in a crucial 22-5 Samford run with under 10 minutes to go which turned a 17-point Evansville lead into a tie contest. Both players chipped in nine points during the run, Maxwell on three three-pointers and London on three lay-ups and three free throws, to turn a 56-39 UE lead into a 61-61 tie with 3:47 to play.

 

UE freshman forward Samantha Heck would quickly end the run with a lay-up with 2:59 to play to give the Purple Aces a 63-61 lead. Samford would battle back though to grab a 66-64 cushion on a pair of free throws by freshman Hannah Dawson and a three-pointer by junior forward Savannah Hill with 1:48 to play after a Stephanie Bamberger free throw for UE.

 

Heck would get Evansville back to even with a pair of free throws with 1:25 to play to tie the game at 66, before Maxwell would have her final say. Her free throw with 1:08 to play would give Samford a 67-66 lead, and after an offensive foul call against Evansville and a pair of empty possessions for both teams, her two free throws with nine seconds remaining gave the Bulldogs a 69-66 cushion. Evansville tried to send the game into overtime with a three-pointer at the end of regulation, but sophomore forward Chelsea Falkenstein’s try from the right wing came up strong.

 

Falkenstein led four Purple Aces in double-figures with 14 points and a game-high nine rebounds, both career-highs. Heck joined her in double-figures with 13 points on 5-of-6 shooting from the floor, while fellow freshman Chelsea Hawkins and senior guard Amy Gallagher both pitched in 11 points each for UE.

 

Maxwell led all scorers with 17 points, while London and Hill added 16 points each for Samford.

 

With the victory, Samford improves to 2-0 on the year. Evansville, meanwhile, slips to 0-2 on the young season. The Purple Aces are now off until next Saturday, November 21 when UE travels to Murray, Kentucky to take on the Racers of Murray State University. Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. and Saturday’s game can be heard on an internet-only basis on-line at both www.gopurpleaces.com and wuev.evansville.edu.